Not-Review: Mutant Blobs Attack!

Eric and I have been huge fans of Mutant Blobs Attack! since we saw it at PAX last summer. Due to the fact that it is a Vita launch title, we have been covering the game quite a bit. You may have even noticed the fancy site skin that we are using and that both Eric and I are actually in the game. Because of this I would feel really shady if we had an official review here on the site. But that doesn’t stop me from writing up my impressions of the game.

Here is the short version. If you have a Vita there is no reason what-so-ever that you should not drop the $8 and pick up Mutant Blobs Attack! Now if you want to stick around and not just start playing now… here is the long version.

First a small refresher on what this game actually is. You take one part Katamari and another part platformer. Put it in a food processor and add some coding magic. Mutant Blobs Attack! is all about getting bigger and solving some tricky platforming puzzles. You take your mutant blob through almost 30 different stages trying to get through each stage as fast as possible while still collecting as much stuff as you can absorb into the little guy.

You might think that this sounds familiar. Well if you played Tales From Space: About A Blob last year on your PS3, Mutant Blobs Attack is the semi-sequel to it. While you won’t be playing the friendly green and orange blobs this time around, you will be in control of the mean and green mutant blob who is sporting some purple spikes. Our review of About A Blob was rather glowing, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t have its own share of problems. You had to hold down a button to absorb items, you were constantly holding the run button, you couldn’t use the D-Pad… I could go on. Mutant Blobs Attack fixes every last one of those issues.

Now you will automatically pick up items. Making it even easier for you to grow your blob. The mutant blob is also faster than the old blobs, so there is no need for a run button. The game also supports D-Pad input, so you can feel like you are playing your favorite old-school platformer all over again. A side note here, but the Vita D-Pad is one of the best pads I have used in a long time. Unlike the split pad on the Dual Shock, the Vita’s pad is all one piece. It feels great on your thumb and offers a very responsive feel when doing the platforming sections.

The game also takes use of the Vita’s fancy components. Obviously because you are mutant you can fly around certain sections like you have a jet pack. To boost you can use the back-touch sensor on the Vita. This works great as you finger won’t be blocking the great looking visuals on the screen. But if you aren’t feeling it, the game also has the shoulder buttons doing the same functionality. The screens of the game don’t really do the game justice as the 2D art really pops with the Vita’s screen. I am sure every game site out there has been raving on about the screen, but it is all true. The game just looks fantastic on it.

There are sections where you will have to manipulate objects on screen using front touch. These all have a green orb on them, so they aren’t hard to miss. It all works as you think it would and these parts really add something to the game. Additionally there are the Tilt-A-Blob sections. Consider these as little side-missions where you are using the gyros to guide the blob either around a level or through a maze. Have you ever played one of those labyrinth puzzles? Some of them are just like that. The visuals for each of these levels are different as well. At one point you are playing in a Game Boy like world, it is a trip.

Another thing that I really like in Mutant Blobs Attack is the constant growing size of your blob. It seemed that in About A Blob at the start of almost every stage you would be a small tiny thing and have to grow. Now with Mutant Blobs Attack you will rarely start a level smaller than you were in the level before. This really adds to the momentum of playing through stages. You get that feeling of wanting to continue, just to see what you will be absorbing next. One thing I do miss is that there really aren’t any “boss” fights. You will have to take out a tank or two but they really aren’t a challenge. The game is rather easy, if you can master the platforming. There are no lives, so you can die as much as you want — this will affect your level score though. You can probably crank through all the levels in a few hours. With no multiplayer, the replayability will have to come from leaderboard chasing and trophy hunting. You better believe that there will be some epic battles going on between PSNStores staff on that leaderboard. It will be PAX Prime all over again.

I found the game to be hilarious at times. All of its humor comes through the level artwork, as there is no real dialogue. Throughout each of the stages there are just randompunseverywhereto be seen. I think I saw EB PP Games in one level and almost lost it. Brad and Curtis would be proud.

So if you are in the market for a great little game to play on your new piece of Sony hardware, look no further than Mutant Blobs Attack! The game is just what you want with a launch title: it makes good use of the new hardware features, it looks great, it is a blast to play, and most importantly it is light on your wallet.

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